JUNIOR TOURNAMENTS

USTA JUNIOR NATIONAL RANKING SYSTEM

To quickly locate information on specific topics related to the USTA National Junior Ranking System, click on the ranking topic in the list below. Questions about the ranking can be directed to the USTA Junior and Collegiate Competition Department at jrcomp@usta.com.

OVERVIEW
The United States Tennis Association uses a Points Per Round Combined Ranking System (PPR) to annually rank junior players and publish weekly National Standings Lists. Ranking Points are earned by winning singles and doubles matches at various types of USTA national tournaments and designated ITF tournaments and extra Ranking Points are earned for winning singles matches over highly ranked players. Ranking Points are combined (with greater weight placed on Ranking Points earned in singles) for a player’s Ranking Point total and players are ordered based on this total.

DEFINITIONS
Several terms are used in this description of PPR, and knowledge of these terms is helpful to understanding how the system works:National Ranking Tournaments: National Ranking Tournaments are all tournaments on the National Junior Tournament Schedule (NJTS), and all count for national ranking. Additionally, each Sectional Association designates up to 6 singles and 6 doubles National Ranking Tournaments (also called Sectional Ranking Tournaments) that count for national ranking. Because Sectional events are designated National Ranking Tournaments, it is possible for a player to earn a national ranking by playing only in Sectional tournaments. .Points Per Round: These are the Ranking Points assigned to winning rounds at the National Ranking Tournaments.Bonus Points: These are the Ranking Points assigned to winning singles matches over highly ranked players. Bonus Points are not earned for winning doubles matches. Bonus Points earned at several Bonus Point Only Events (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and the Canadian Open) are part of the PPR Calculation in the 18s division only. Bonus Points earned at all other National Ranking Tournaments are "attached" to the event at which they are earned. If a tournament is not among a player’s best 6 tournaments, the Bonus Points for that tournament will be part of the PPR Calculation.Ranking Points: This term is used in two ways. It generally refers to both types of points - Points Per Round and Bonus Points. It also is used as a term for the total Ranking Points a player has based on the PPR Calculation.PPR Calculation: This is the mathematical calculation of Ranking Points used to determine a player’s standing or ranking.National Ranking Levels: Every National Ranking Tournament is assigned a National Ranking Level. The Level of a tournament determines the number of Points Per Round earned by winning matches at tournaments.Point Tables: The Point Tables show the Points Per Round assigned to each National Ranking Level. There are various tables for the different draw and consolation types used at National Ranking Tournaments.National Standings Lists (NSLs): These are the lists, published weekly by the USTA, that order the players based on their Ranking Point total. NSLs are used for selection and seeding at many National Ranking Tournaments.National Ranking Lists: These lists are published shortly after the end of a year and are the official national rankings for a calendar year.Best 6: This term refers to the number of singles tournaments and doubles tournaments that count for standing and ranking (effectively 12 total tournaments). A player may have more than 6 singles and 6 doubles National Ranking Tournaments on their player record, but only the results from the best 6 of each will be used to in the PPR Calculation. NOTE: Prior to January 1, 2011, the PPR Calculation used a Best 8 system.Player Record: Each time the USTA publishes a National Standings List, new Player Records are also published for each player. A Player Record shows all results and Ranking Points earned in National Ranking Tournaments for the previous 12-month period and indicates which of these are a player’s Best 6.

STANDINGS & RANKINGS: IS THERE A DIFFERENCE?
The term "ranking" is generally used to refer to a player’s position on any published ranking or standing list; however, the terms "standing" and "ranking" refer to two different things. All PPR Calculations are based on Ranking Points earned in the previous 12-month period. Standings are based on Ranking Points earned during the previous rolling 12-month period, and they include Ranking Points earned by a player in the division and any older division. Rankings are based on Ranking Points earned in one division during a January to December calendar year.

ELIGIBILITY FOR NATIONAL RANKING
The USTA has citizenship/alien eligibility requirements for earning a national ranking. These requirements also must be met to enter USTA National Championships, the USTA National Doubles Championship, USTA National Masters, USTA National Sweet Sixteens, USTA National Selection Tournaments, USTA Regional Tournaments, and USTA Team Championships. Consequently only players that meet these eligibility requirements appear on the National Standings Lists.

All players who are US Citizens meet the eligibility requirements. Additionally, the following Aliens also meet the eligibility requirements:
• Permanent resident aliens of the United States.
• Aliens who have resided in the United States continuously for more than one year and who are members of families of persons in the diplomatic or consular corps.
• Aliens who have been granted Refugee Status
• Aliens who have been granted Asylee Status
• Aliens who have been granted Temporary Protected Status
• Aliens with Adjustment Status - e.g. aliens whose I-485 (Application to Register Permanent Resident or Adjust Status) has been accepted for filing

• Canadian citizens and landed Canadian immigrants who reside in British Columbia, provided that they were USTA members for at least one month during 2010 and so long as they do not allow their USTA memberships to laps for a period of more than six months.
Documents commonly used to support a particular alien status include a permanent resident alien card (green card), Form I-94, or a receipt confirming filing of the I-485.

PPR RULES & REGULATIONS
• A player must win a round to receive any Ranking Points for the tournament. The Point Tables are based on draws as large as 128 players. Players do not receive any points until they have won a round. Byes do not qualify as wins.
• Withdrawals and walkovers qualify as wins for the advancing player and earn Points Per Round, but do not earn Bonus Points.
• Retirements qualify as wins for the advancing player and earn Points Per Round and, if eligible, Bonus Points.
• A player who advances because of a default that takes place before the commencement of the first point in the match or because the opponent is disqualified shall receive Points Per Round for advancing, but shall not receive any Bonus Points.
• A player who advances because of a default that takes place after the commencement of the first point in the match shall receive Points Per Round for advancing and, if eligible, Bonus Points.
• A player who is defaulted from a match for code violations under the Point Penalty System or misconduct forfeits Ranking Points accumulated during the event. A player defaulted from a singles event loses points accumulated for play in the singles main draw and singles consolation draw. A player defaulted from a doubles event loses Ranking Points accumulated for play in the doubles draw and the doubles consolation draw (if any).
• No Points Per Round will be earned in the qualifying rounds of tournaments when the qualifying draw and main draw are covered in a single sanction. However, Bonus Points will accumulate for play in the qualifying draw and will be "attached" to the tournament at which they are earned.
• Juniors eligible for national ranking who win matches against other juniors eligible for national ranking at the Australian Open Junior Championships, French Open Junior Championships, Wimbledon Junior Championships, and Canadian Junior International Championships will receive Bonus Points that will be added into the PPR Calculation. These events are know as Bonus Point Only Events.

CALCULATING STANDINGS AND RANKINGS
Each player’s standing and ranking is based on the accumulation of Ranking Points at National Ranking Tournaments for:
• winning rounds (Points Per Round) in singles and doubles; and
• having wins in singles over top 100 players (Bonus Points).

The PPR Calculation:
National Standings Lists and Ranking Lists order players based the following PPR Calculation:

100% of the Ranking Points earned at 6 best singles National Ranking Tournaments

15% of the Ranking Points earned at 6 best doubles National Ranking Tournaments

100% of the singles Bonus Points earned at Bonus Point Only Events

=

Total Ranking Points

Criteria for Inclusion on a National Standings Lists (NSLs):
An NSL for a division will include all players who:
• meet the age eligibility requirements of the division;
• meet the citizenship/certain alien eligibility requirements;
• have played at least one National Ranking Tournament in the division; and
• have accumulated at least 1 Ranking Point as the result of an on-court win. An on-court win is one that takes place on-court after the start of the match. Matches won by withdrawal, walkover, default, or disqualification prior to the start of the match are not considered on-court wins. Matches won by winning a match point, or if the opponent retires or is defaulted after the start of the match are considered on-court wins.

Ranking Points earned in an older age division tournament count towards a player’s standing in one or more younger age divisions. The order of the NSL is based on Ranking Points earned during the previous 12-month rolling period.

When more than one player has the same number of total Ranking Points, tie-breaks on an NSL will be determined as follows:
1. A player whose best event has the highest number of Ranking Points, second best, third best, etc. through sixth event
2. Total Bonus Points earned in all events played during the computation period
3. Best random draw number

Special Note Regarding Bonus Point Lists: The USTA publishes monthly Bonus Point Lists that are used to determine the top 100 players that wins against result in earning Bonus Points. Bonus Point Lists have the same requirements and criteria as the National Standings Lists.

Criteria for Receiving a National Ranking:
Annually, the USTA ranks players in the Boys’ and Girls’ 18, 16, 14, and 12 divisions. The final rankings for a junior age division shall include all players who:
• meet the citizenship/certain alien eligibility requirements;
• have been age eligible for play in the division at any time during the calendar year; and
• who have accumulated at least 200 points in the division.
Only points earned in the age division will count towards ranking in that division. Players may be ranked in more than one age division if they have been age eligible in more than one division during the year and have met the minimum point requirement for each age division. The order of the National Ranking List is based on Ranking Points earned in a previous calendar year. If more than one player has the same number of Ranking Points, both shall have the same National Ranking.

POINT TABLES
There are six separate Point Tables for the National Ranking Tournaments as follows:

• Main Draw with a Feed-in Championship through Quarterfinals

• Main Draw with a Feed-in Championship through Round of 16 + Quarterfinal Playoffs

• Main Draw with a Feed-In Championship through Semifinals

• Single Elimination Main Draw; Main Draw with a non-Feed-in Championship Consolation; Compass

• USTA National Masters

• Team Tournament

Click here to view the Ranking Point Tables for 2015 National Ranking Tournaments.

BONUS POINTS: REWARDS FOR SIGNIFICANT WINS
Bonus Points are earned at National Ranking Tournaments for significant wins in singles over top 150 players according to the table below. Bonus Points are earned for wins in main draw, consolation draw, and qualifying draw matches. At Level 1 through Level 4 tournaments, Bonus Points are "attached" to the tournament at which they are earned. If a tournament total is not among a player’s best six tournaments, neither the Points Per Round nor the Bonus Points will count toward the player’s Ranking Point total.

Additionally, eligible juniors winning matches against other eligible juniors in the main draw and qualifying rounds at the Bonus Point Only Events (Australian Open Juniors, French Open Juniors, Wimbledon Juniors, and Canadian International Juniors) they will receive Bonus Points in the 18s division according to the Bonus Points table below. These Bonus Points will be awarded independent of the best eight tournaments and will be added to the player’s total points earned in the player’s best six tournaments.

Standing of
Player Defeated

Bonus Points
Earned for Win

Top 10

150

#11 through #20

125

#21 through #50

100

#51 through #75

50

#76 through #100

35

#101 through #150

20

A player’s standing during a tournament can be found on the Bonus Point Lists. To better understand the Bonus Point List, click here to view a table that shows the publication dates for the year’s Bonus Points Lists, the match results included in each Bonus Point List, and the dates during which each list is used.

To view the Bonus Point Lists online, click on "Ranking & Standing Lists" in the navigation bar on the right side of the screen. Once on the USTA’s Ranking Home page:
• select National in the top drop down box
• select the current year in the drop down box
• select your division in the drop down box
• choose Top 100 Bonus Point List from the List Type drop down box

These are individual doubles standings lists published monthly by the USTA that order the top 200 players in doubles based on each player's doubles point total for the previous 12-month period. The lists are calculated in the same manner as the National Standings Lists, except that they only include doubles results.

These lists are also known as "National Individual Doubles Seeding Lists" and are used for seletion into the USTA National Doubles Championships and for seeding of all USTA national doubles events.

PLAYER RECORDS: REVIEWING & SUBMITTING CORRECTIONS
Players are responsible for regularly reviewing their national singles and doubles player records and should promptly submit corrections to the USTA Junior and Collegiate Competition Department - jrcomp@usta.com. It is recommended that players review their records after each tournament they play – tournament results are typically posted no more than one week after the completion of a tournament.

Prior to finalizing National Rankings, the USTA publishes a Tentative Ranking list no later than January 15. Corrections must be submitted no later than January 30 to be considered prior to the publication of the Final Rankings.

Finding Your Record Online: To find your player record online, click on "Ranking & Standing Lists" in the navigation bar on the right side of the screen. Once on the USTA’s Ranking Home page:
• select National in the top drop down box
• select the current year in the top drop down box
• select your division in the top drop down box
• choose Final Ranking, Tentative Ranking, or Standing List from the List Type drop down box
Click on the list you want to review and then on your name to view your player record. If you appear on lists for more than one age division, you must go to each list to review your record for the division as the linked player record reached from a list only includes National Ranking Tournaments that count in that list’s division.

PUBLICATION OF TENTATIVE & FINAL NATIONAL JUNIOR RANKINGSTentative Rankings: This is the preliminary National Ranking determined by junior ranking committees. Tentative National Rankings shall be published by January 15 of each year and have no official standing until certified by the Junior Ranking Review Board. Any corrections to a player’s record must be received no later January 30 of each year. Send corrections to jrcomp@usta.com.Final Rankings: These are the National Rankings in all divisions that have been certified by the Junior Ranking Review Board. Final National Rankings are determined after corrections have been received and acted upon by junior ranking committees. Final National Rankings are not subject to appeal.